Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Land of Forgotten Souls
by PokeThatPokemon
Summary: After stumbling into a strange rift, Robin doesn't feel the same. Now a Fletchinder, she must survive in her new body faced by the humans she once walked amongst as an equal. Banding together with Ren the Quilava, another transformed human, and a bunch of new friends in Chesnaught's Guild, can they form a team and save all the Pokemon's world before it's too late? SYOC closed :)
1. Prologue

Hello, welcome to my second fanfic! Now, let me get to the point. This is NOT the most important story in my life - my number one priority is Legend of the Whisperers and it will continue to be. I have no reason to give up on it, and nor will there be for a long time. Secondly, yes, this is SYOC, but I will accept TEN OCs MAX! That's it. Any after it closes will not be accepted for any reason. Further rules are at the end of the chapter, so I will add details then! Anyway, to avoid flames, I will have to write something so here I go with the prologue!

* * *

_Victory Road_

Yanking a Max Revive free from her bag and holding it to her Lucario's mouth, Robin gritted her teeth. Winning the Pokemon League would be harder than she'd imagined, and she was definitely not as prepared as she thought she was. Her last Max Revive had just been consumed, and her Sylveon was still out cold. This 'walk in the park' (as she'd previously described it) was not as easy as she had originally thought. Releasing her whole team from their Poke Balls, as she did most of the time, she looked over them. Lucario, Flygon, fainted Sylveon, Talonflame, Quilava and Swellow. Everyone's health was low and one fainted - she was beginning to lose hope.

And did I mention it was raining?

Droplets inching their way over the rim of her cycling cap and onto her raincoat, she shivered. The fire-type Quilava and Talonflame were crouched underneath her Flygon's wings, each glancing around with a terrified look on their faces. It's just the rain, she thought, and pressed on with the team. She was going to beat that Champion, no matter what.

Her Quilava starter made a run for it, clinging onto her Trainer's leg and trying to stop her from moving any further. Ignoring the weasel-like Pokemon attached to her thigh Robin pressed onwards, gritting her teeth. However, she had to admit; something felt wrong here. Like something bad would happen. Shaking the feeling away, she marched on towards the chasm ahead without listening to the distressed cries of her party behind her.

Oh boy, was that a mistake.

Stepping into the cave, the Quilava let go of her leg and the Pokemon looked grief-stricken for a minute. Flygon screeched and tried to pull her out, but his claws grabbed a fistful of thin air. Looking back to where their trainer had stood, there was now no trace but six empty Poke Balls on the ground and the team she'd left behind.

* * *

Okay, prologue done! Now for the OC form. You MUST have all of these things in your submission and clearly label your PM with the story name.

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**OC FORM**

**Name: **(your character's name)

**Gender:** (male or female)

**Species: **(that's the Pokemon they turn into/are)

**Appearance: **(Do they wear any form of clothing? Markings? Shiny? Different colour? What distinguishes them from other Pokemon?)

**Personality: **(please, PLEASE add lots of detail. Do they have quirks? How do they interact with others? The choice is yours!)

**Battling Style (optional): **(This is how they choose to battle. Do they specialise in defense, or go all-out with attacks? Are they strategic?)

**Moveset: **(every Pokemon has moves. Which ones? Please use moves their species can actually use.)

**Nature: **(Natures affect battles and interaction. What is yours? Try and link it to the personality.)

**Human: **(were they human once?)

**History: **(this is important. If they were human, how did they become a Pokemon? If they are already Pokemon, what's their backstory?)

**Strengths: **(What are their strong points?)

**Weaknesses: **(What are they not so good at?)

**Likes: **(what do they like?)

**Dislikes: **(what don't they like?)

**In the main team?: **(This will be explained. Just keep reading.)

* * *

**RULES**

_1) The 'Main Team' option is only to enter a competition. When all the OCs are in, I will judge the two best and allow them to be part of the main rescue team along with my own two characters. Do not BEG to be in the team or it will be an automatic NO, do not WHINGE if yours is not picked or I will block you. I'm sorry it's harsh but I need to keep stuff under control. If I let everyone choose to be in the rescue team the whole story would be like: "woohoo, I'm a main character, let's go dogpile onto the other twenty all stampeding around a dungeon together". No thank you. _

_2) Do not submit via review, PM only please! If you want your character to be in the story and don't have an account, get one. I won't accept anything strewn around on the reviews page._

_3) Any submissions after the OC window closes, will not be accepted for ANY reason. Sorry._

_4) Some Pokemon are taken:_

_~Fletchinder  
~Quilava_

_~Gallade_

_~Vulpix_

* * *

AAAAND... That's it! Thank you all, and see you next chapter! (which may take a while seeing as I now have two fanfics running)

~PokeThatPokemon


	2. Awakening

Welcome back! Here you go, a whole chapter about what happened after the accident. Enjoy!

* * *

_Where... am I?_

Coughing and spluttering out sand that had appeared to have lodged in her throat, Robin opened her eyes and her vision blurred for a second. Attempting to stand as her surroundings came into focus, there was definitely something wrong about this strange place she'd found herself in. Very strange indeed.

For one, she was no longer on Victory Road but on a beach, waves lapping against the shoreline. Robin had always disliked water, and she was relieved she had been half-buried a few metres away from the tide.

Another thing was that her body felt weird, every inch of it tingling and unnaturally light. Staggering to her feet, she glanced up and down the beach, noticing a bluey-black lump sticking out of the sand. Making her way over she pulled the thing out of the sand, where it coughed and opened its eyes. "Hello, mother..." it groaned before rolling onto its back and lying there.

"A TALKING QUILAVA?!" Her startled screech brought the Pokémon to its feet, anxiously glancing left and right. "What? Where?!" it squeaked nervously, eventually turning to look at Robin herself, who was standing on the beach a few metres away. "Oh, look, a bird thingy! My day is just getting better and better..." he muttered, shaking his head from side to side until he was sure this was no dream. "Are you insane?" she asked the foreign Pokémon, tilting her head. "A TALKING bird thingy! Yep, I think I am going mental." he replied, rolling over on the sand once again and looking down at his feet. "WHOA! What the heck am I?!" Robin laughed. "Welcome to the world of insanity. I'm Robin; pleased to meet you!" The Quilava cautiously approached the red bird, offering her his hand – no, paw – to shake. "It's Ren. At least I found someone – even if she is a bird!" She took his paw and shook it, in the process noticing her wing where her hand should be. _So I'm a Pokémon too._

Still dazed and confused, Ren was first to speak up as the two stared each other down. "We should survey the area – to find somewhere to sleep for the night." "No duh!" Robin replied, perking up a bit. "Who should go?" Ren looked annoyed for a minute, his facial expression screaming, 'are you SERIOUS?!' "You are a bird." he pointed out. "So what?" Robin quirked an eyebrow and looked confused. "You can fly." "Ohhh..." she said, relaxing a bit.

Until she ran into a problem.

She had absolutely no idea how to fly.

With the Quilava watching, she decided on a run-up. Dashing awkwardly across the sands and flapping her new wings, Robin kicked off the ground...

And fell flat on her face.

Ren sniggered and doubled over laughing, which resulted in a small blast of flame hitting him in the head. He barely felt it, but stared at her with an expression of disbelief on his face. "What was THAT?" Robin tilted her head and asked, "Ember attack? Are you serious? It's one of the best-known moves that a Fire-Type Pokémon can learn!" Her Quilava friend looked even more confused as he approached. "So Pokémon _isn't_ just a game?" Robin looked shocked for a moment, and Ren sat down on the sands. "Well, I come from Kalos and I had a team to travel with, and I beat the Gym Leaders, so... Yep, I'm pretty sure it's not just a game."

This time, she just beat her wings multiple times before attempting to take off, and she did it on the spot. Ren watched as she lifted off the ground and into the air, her attempts finally successful. "Okay, I can fly. What now?" she called down merrily, loop-the-looping above her companion's head.

The pair wandered along the shoreline, Robin having finally touched the floor and walking beside Ren. She told him tales about her world, and he mentioned his a few times – a world without Pokémon, a Champion, Leagues or Regions. She thought it must be a pretty boring world to live in, having no Pokémon like that. Ren was clearly in awe of her stories of Pokémon, the Region she lives in, her journey to become a Master and the freak cave incident. That was when she realised her team must be wandering around the Victory Road, trainer-less and alone. Her Sylveon was still fainted, but there was nothing she could do about it now. She had to hope her team would make it without her.

"So, what else do you know?" Ren asked for the billionth time. Robin sighed and shook her head. "You are a Quilava, I am a Pokémon that I don't know because I can't look at myself, and we are in this unknown land where there is no sign of life – human or Pokémon." "Or animal." Ren added. He seemed obsessed with his animals even if they were nowhere near as exciting as Pokémon. Lifting off again, Robin circled round the beach once before descending to eye-level. "There's fresh water in the forest ahead! We should go there!" she chirruped, and Ren picked up the pace.

Just within the emerald treeline, just as Robin had described, lay a clear pond with lily-pads sitting serenely on the surface. Peering at their own reflections, they were both amazed and surprised at once. "So I'm a Fletchinder..." Robin muttered, ruffling her feathers and searching her memory for when she'd seen one. Ah! Her Talonflame had been a Fletchinder before he evolved! Smiling fondly at the memory, she glanced over to Ren who was clearly fascinated. "Oh, great. You're a flaming bird and I'm a weasel who can set his own butt on fire." He burst his head and tail-flames briefly to exaggerate. "Plus, I never played Pokémon, so I have NO FREAKING IDEA what's going on here!" Smacking one paw against the ground, he paced the edge of the pond whilst his companion watched from a mossy log she was seated on. "Tell you what, why don't we stay together? You and I can learn more about this weird new world we have arrived in, and we can both find a way to get home!" she asked, and Ren lit up momentarily. "Sure, why not?"

As the last rays of sunlight faded away, the pair realised they had not eaten for hours on end. Tutting, Robin flapped away into the woods to gather berries. Her favourites had to be Leppa berries and, as she turned around, she noticed a large crop of them in the higher branches of a tree. Fluttering up and yanking them free, she loop-the-looped and wheeled back to where her friend was trying out his flames. He kept letting out little puffs of smoke and flame to test his new power, but was rudely interrupted by a bird shoving little orange berries into his mouth. "Mmmf... ack... wrrrmmrrdddffff?!" (translation: what are these things?!) Of course Robin didn't hear or understand him, until he spat a gooey mess of juicy orange berries out and onto the floor. "What the heck ARE those things?!" he finally gasped, hyperventilating and retching to get the taste out of his mouth. "If you don't like them, tough. Those restore the PP of your moves and, most likely, will fill your belly. So if you don't eat them, prepare to starve." Handing him some other berries, he gingerly held them to his mouth.

Chirping happily, she flapped away to check the local area. Peering over the treetops she could vaguely make out the beach she'd awoken upon, but this time there was a difference. They had travelled quite a way to the east and now, shrouded in darkness, any source of light would be obvious.

Well, there was a trail of smoke and fiery embers drifting into the sky less than half a mile away.

Dropping down back to the ground and hopping as fast as she could go, flapping her wings rather ungracefully to where Ren still sat, she squawked rather loudly in his ear, causing him to shoot up three feet in the air.

"There's a fire! A fire, which means it could be a village, which means there might be humans who can help get us home!" she screeched, panting once she'd finished her sentence. The shocked Quilava, still hyperventilating from the shock, regained his composure and looked up to where Robin was now hovering. With a blast of flame he sprinted after the bird, leaping effortlessly over logs and crashing through the forest floor.

Emerging on the beach, the pair glanced from side to side. The fire was closer now, and they took off up the beach to reach it. As they approached, Robin could just make out a variety of small huts by the seashore, waves lapping at the sand less than a metre away from one of the buildings. Having landed at Ren's side, Robin led him into the centre of the village where a few amphibious Pokémon sat around the blazing flames. There were no humans in sight. Robin cleared her throat and spoke.

"Hello? Do any of you know where to find any humans?"

The Pokémon stared in disbelief at this Fletchinder and Quilava who had just walked right into a village of Water-Types looking for humans. The Pokémon closest to Robin, a Corsola, peered up at the two of them.

"Are you two Trainers' Pokémon?" she asked curiously.

An outburst of rage and confusion filled the villagers, who had started to throw nasty words and water-based attacks at the pair.

"Trying to lure Trainers over here, are we?" yelled a Lombre.

"Stay away from our village, tame scum!" a Swanna at the back screeched.

The pair turned and fled the settlement, scared out of their mind and injured badly.

"I am NEVER going into a Pokémon village again." Robin gasped, panting after their mad dash. Ren nodded fearfully and promptly collapsed on the sand, exhausted and afraid. They had nowhere to stay for the night, nobody to ask for directions and barely any experience of battling in their new forms. Scouting around, a large tree with low branches sat beside the shore with a hollow in between two of the roots. Ren squeezed into the alcove, curling up like a sleeping cat, whilst Robin tucked her head under her wing in the branches above. Sleep gradually took hold, and they found themselves drifting into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

"Rin, are you leaving so soon? Do stay for the night, in case those tamed Pokémon come back with humans!" called the village leader, a Greninja, after the Marill trudging away from the settlement.

"Sorry, sir, but I need to go. The Guild needs me back by seven." the Aqua Mouse Pokémon replied with a smile. This was not a lie, but also not the real reason for his departure.

"If you say so. Do visit again, and stay safe out there!" replied the blue frog, returning to his hut on the shore. The last embers from the fire drifted into the night sky, shimmering like miniature stars for a while before dimming and being whisked away by the winds. Rin smirked before turning and dashing on all fours to where he suspected the strange Pokémon would have gone. He had a hunch that those two were not what they seemed.

He reached into the pouch he kept on his upper right arm and pulled out a few berries, popping them into his mouth and scampering onwards. Sprinting across the shore and returning to his normal, bipedal position once he reached the treeline, he trod more carefully so as to not trip on roots. Wandering along the edge of the beach he found he didn't trip over a root but an inconspicuous, bluey-black, long, thin lump curled in a hollow. The thing writhed, lifted its head, and groaned;

"Ughh... Why does this always happen to me?!" Rin peered at the thing. It was a Quilava, and one of the pair that had wandered into Greninja's village earlier. Not far above them, on a thin branch less than a metre above their heads, the Fletchinder stirred but did not wake.

"You're the Pokémon that walked into that village this evening, right?" Rin asked the Volcano Pokémon, who had turned to face him. Analysing that Rin was not a threat to either of them, Ren stretched his long body and yawned.

"Why do you want to know?" he murmured through a drawn-out sigh. The Marill smiled and replied,

"I am a member of Chesnaught's Guild, and the Guild comprises of rescue teams formed of Pokémon who help others in need. They receive cases about many things and we have to solve them. The other day my friend Izol had to go deactivate a Poké Ball and release the innocent Pokémon captured within, and last week we were called out to retrieve a child from the clutches of evil Pokémon. Izol and I are a team and we need new members."

Ren looked at the Marill in disbelief and in response began to climb up Robin's tree. Shaking her awake and letting her flap down to the floor, Rin introduced himself.

"I'm Rin, and I would like for you guys to be part of our rescue team."

Robin tilted her head to one side. "What's in it for us? We're lost in an unfamiliar body in a weird place and you come up to our tree, wake us all up," she shot a stern look at Ren, "and then offer for us to come with you and this Izol?"

Rin smiled and shook his head. "Chesnaught, the Guildmaster, is also searching for something else. He is concerned about the amount of humans become Pokémon there are nowadays, and he is dedicated to finding a way to turn you all back into humans once again."

Ren looked desperate for a moment. "I don't come from this world! There's gotta be a way to get me home too!" Rin looked thoughtful for a moment.

"I'll talk to Chesnaught about it. He'll think of something. Anyway, you want to join us, rig- dammit!" Robin looked at the mouse with confusion for a moment at this little quirk of his, and Ren sniggered. In response Rin directed a blast of water right in his face and the Quilava tumbled backwards with a hurt expression, muttering 'ow' under his breath repeatedly for the next five minutes.

Eventually Rin began to move, scampering into the shrubbery and beckoning for the two fire-types to follow. Robin flapped up above whilst Ren tried to keep up below, lagging behind.

Robin was first to spot the tents, multiple structures shaped like Pokémon all clustered together in a clearing. As Rin and her Quilava friend entered and began to move towards the main tent, which was primarily white with green and red trim like a Chesnaught, she landed and hopped in beside them.

"Chesnaught? It's Rin!" The Aqua Mouse Pokémon straightened up and bowed to the figure looming above them all. The towering Guildmaster turned slowly to face them, peering down at Robin and Ren with curiosity. "I found some new members for our team!"

The large Spiny Armor Pokémon chuckled and leant over, lowering himself to the ground and sitting down to be at eye level with the Marill, Quilava and Fletchinder before him. "Who are you two, then?" he asked.

Robin puffed up her feathers and spoke. "I'm Robin, and this is my new friend Ren. We are looking for a way home, and Rin told us about the Guild." Ren nodded and sat down as well, a hopeful glint in his eyes.

"So you two are humans?" Chesnaught asked, and the pair both nodded to confirm this. The large Pokémon stared off into the distance with a thoughtful expression on his face, until he stirred back into reality. "Oh! Sorry. I was just going to say that we have other guild members who were once human, each with troubles of their own. If you come to the Lower Floor of this tent here after curfew this evening, the others also gather. Come join in! It's not compulsory, but you can share your tale with the others and listen to what everyone else has to say. If you want to, take these." Chesnaught handed the two a pair of small, thin stone slabs with an insignia on it. "Pass these to the guards that patrol at curfew and they will let you in." Robin took her slab and examined it.

"Thanks, Guildmaster!" she chirped happily. Ren nodded in agreement and picked his up.

Chesnaught raised one huge hand for silence. "Breakfast is at seven on the dot, lunch is at one for those who remain at the Guild, and everyone should be back for the evening meal at seven. Lastly, curfew is at nine, when all Guild members should stay in their tents. Guards patrol after then, so there will be no sneaking around camp!" he instructed. Robin and Ren shot sideways glances at each other and smiled.

"We're in!"

* * *

The Sneasel sat in the tent, scuffing her feet against the ground. Rin would be back soon, but she was tired of waiting for the Marill to return from the seashore village so they could go eat. It was nearly seven and he should already be there.

"Hey, Izol! You're still here, right?" called a voice from outside. The Sharp Claw Pokémon's ears pricked up and he dashed to the entrance.

"Where've you been? I've been bored out of my mind!" she ranted as Rin approached the door. "And who the heck are these guys?" she yelled, as if the Marill couldn't hear her although he wasn't that far away.

"Izol! You actually want the whole camp to hear our conversation, right?" That shut her up, and Rin entered followed by Robin and Ren.

Izol was no ordinary Sneasel. On her body lay multiple smudges of pink, and her claws were the same colour. She had multiple scratches and scars all over her body, and one slashed across her left eye. Said eyes were both bright gold like a Shiny Sneasel, along with her left ear and tail feathers. Overall she lay somewhere in between a Shiny and regular Sneasel.

"Izol, this is... In fact, you can introduce yourselves to the both of us, right?" Rin asked cheerfully. Izol facepalmed at this clear exhibition of Rin's verbal quirk. Robin cleared her throat and began.

"I'm Robin. I... umm... _was _a human until I got caught in a rift. I am now a Fletchinder and somewhere far away from where I was before." Izol gave her a hard stare with just a trace of hatred before grinning and turning to Ren. _It's okay, she's not human now, _she thought.

"I'm Ren. I am from another world where there are no Pokémon, so I'm sort of new here. I also fell into a rift and it may have been a portal too." The two teammates glanced at each other in confusion before grinning and welcoming the two into the tent with open arms.

"Welcome to the Team!"

* * *

There you go! So I judged the OCs I was given, and Rin and Izol came out on top. Credits to Domingize and DJTiki respectively! It was really close, though, and thank you, all of you who submitted, for making this possible!

Also, all the main team apps will be part of the Guild. If that's not okay, PM or review to let me know!

See you next time! I'm done for now, so see you all soon for another chapter!

P.S: There is a Poll on my profile that is currently tied three ways, and it determines which kind of SYOC Story I do next. I can't do three, so I need your vote! Please go check out my profile page!


	3. The Gathering and First Mission

Chapter Three! Yippee! Well, I'm gonna start this out with the humans-become-Pokémon heading off after nine to see Chesnaught. That is all I have to say for now, so read on and take a look!

* * *

"Robin! Get _up_, you lazy bird!"

The Volcano Pokémon had to practically yank the Fletchinder off her perch, having forgotten the agreement with the Guildmaster and had gone to sleep. Ren dragged the struggling Robin out of the Rescue Team's tent and repeatedly poked her face to awaken her.

"Heyyy... Stop that!" the bird groaned, flapping upright and pecking him forcefully on the rear. Ren yelped and shot into the air, rubbing his backside.

"That hurt, you know!" retorted the Quilava. "We should seriously get going, though. Chesnaught won't be happy if we're not there!"

"Hey, didn't he say it was optional? That means we can go back to Rin and Izol's nice, warm tent and get some decent sleep!" Robin yawned, preparing to take off in the general direction of the tent.

"Not so fast! If I'm going, you're going with me, even if I have to drag you there by your tail feathers!" yelled the Volcano Pokémon. In response Robin launched off the ground, grunting in the strain to get away, but Ren was too quick. He grabbed a mouthful of black feathers and dragged the Fletchinder to the ground, screeching and beating her wings wildly.

This only seemed to grab the attention of a Bisharp who was positioned outside the flap of Chesnaught's tent. Sprinting over to the pair, he stopped a few metres short once he spotted the stone slabs Ren had (thankfully) remembered. A Bisharp dashing at full pelt towards you when you're human-sized is scary – a Bisharp doing the same thing is even scarier when you're about half-a-metre high, and the two were terrified before the guard stopped dead and gestured for the pair to follow.

Padding quietly behind the tall Pokémon, Ren allowed Robin to perch on his back for a while. Approaching the main tent, the Quilava gulped and crept inside whilst the guard resumed his position. _I hope these guys are friendly,_ he hoped as he gently shook his companion awake. "Robin! Get up!" he hissed, rolling over on the carpeted floor and tipping the Fletchinder off his smooth back.

Staggering to her feet and re-joining Ren, who had spotted a trap-door and ladder leading to an underground floor, the two Pokémon strained their ears to hear what was going on down there.

"I think it's like a party..." Robin trailed off, beak open.

"Umm... I sorta imagined it like one of those things where everyone sits in a circle and tells all the others about their problems... what's that called again?" Ren pondered. The bird shook her head and refocused on the problem.

"I don't know... but we won't find out by sitting around here the whole night, eh? Let's go in." The Volcano Pokémon soon agreed and began to crawl down the ladder. Robin fluttered from rung to rung, suddenly aware at the multiple pairs of eyes boring into the back of her neck. Ren gulped and placed his paws on the ground, leaping down and scanning the room nervously.

Turning around slowly and grinning upon spotting the two, Chesnaught lumbered over and formally introduced them to the others.

"Okay, everyone! Simmer down! Now here we have Robin and Ren. As always they are in the same predicament as you are, so be nice and share with these two. Okay?" A murmur of excitement and approval spread around the underground chamber, and a couple of Pokémon glanced their way before returning to what they were originally doing, whether that be talking or just plain messing about.

"I think I like this place!" commented Robin.

A small green plant-like Pokémon sat on a roughly carved stool in the corner of the room, biting down on a berry and staring into space. He was a Snivy, wearing a dark blue neckerchief, and clearly off in his own little world at the current point in time. Ren loped over, sensing loneliness.

"Hey there!" he smiled, holding out a paw to the Grass Snake Pokémon who flinched away, clearly not pleased by the fright of a fire-type staring him in the eyes. His eyes widened and he scrabbled over the edge of the chair, scuttling over the floor with berry still in hand, muttering 'f-fire!' as he went.

"I wonder what's up with that guy?" Robin thought out loud, rubbing her feathered chin with her flight feathers. Watching the Snivy settle back down on the other side of the room, Ren nodded and plopped himself down on the floor.

"Eh, don't mind him. That's just Elin." Looking up to find a Lucario towering above them both, neither appreciated the jumpscare and let out a sigh of relief as the karate-fighting fox lowered himself to the ground beside the pair. "I'm Kaito. Good to see some new faces around here!"

Robin nodded. "I used to have a Lucario on my team when I was still human... a few days ago, actually. He was named Aura... he fought well. And he had a Lucarionite, like that one on your necklace!" She indicated the stone on a silver pendant hanging around Kaito's neck, and he smiled slyly before turning to Ren.

"So what Pokémon did you have?" he asked, and the Quilava took in a deep breath before replying.

"Umm... I had a... Birdscreech, and a Bunnyclaw, and... umm... a Woofwolf!" By then he had turned a noticeable shade of red, and both Lucario and Fletchinder barely held in their laughter. "Those... aren't Pokémon, are they?" he mumbled, and both shook their heads no while the indignant Ren launched little bursts of fire at the two of them. Robin just took the blast, while Kaito flinched away and wiped the burn marks off his fur.

"I'm a Steel type... so in future, watch where you're launching those Embers!" he growled, standing up and running off to find out who had the bowl of Rawst berries. Both Pokémon watched him go, unsure about this stranger.

By ten Robin had all but fallen asleep, losing grip on the wooden beam she was seated on and dropping to the floor. She bounced twice before she even stirred, and when she did she screeched so loud Chesnaught had to call off the meeting due to a headache issue. Everyone in the hall was more than happy to comply, rubbing their sore ears and shooting glares at the Fletchinder. "What did I do?" she whispered to Ren, who yelped and scuttled out the door holding his paws over his ears.

"Just disturbed the whole party and landed half the guild with a day off sick tomorrow!" he teased sarcastically before popping back round the corner, leaving her alone with the Guildmaster.

"Umm... I'm sorry I fell asleep in your gathering. It was fun, at least until everyone just packed up and left..." Chesnaught nodded solemnly and started lifting the tables into the corner with his broad arms.

"It's alright. Everyone messes up a few times upon becoming a Pokémon. They lose their footing, accidentally set tents on fire, flood the place unintentionally... It looks like you have a sleep issue." Robin blushed at this comment.

"Yeah, I do tend to drift off, then do something weird when I'm not quite fully awake yet and then everyone gets mad at me for saying something or falling over on top of them. Oh, and when I fully wake up I can't remember doing it. What did I do here?"

Chesnaught chuckled. "Fell of the beams, bounced twice and let out a screech loud enough to deafen every 'mon within ten miles of this place!" Robin grew even redder than her normal colour and twiddled her feathers a bit, a guilty look on her face. "Well, I suppose you'll be sleeping at lower heights in the guild from now on!"

"Yes, Guildmaster! Thanks for everything!" she squawked hurriedly, saluting with one wing and fluttering up the hatch, shutting the door behind her. "Byee!" she called down before gliding out of the door, past the Bisharp guard who paid her no heed, and away towards the plain brown tent belonging to Rin and Izol.

"Hey! Where've you been, birdie girl?" Izol teased, claws on hips. "We've been peering in this poor guy's ear all the time you were gone, wondering where the heck you were and checking for hearing damage!" Robin blushed again.

"Can you guys stop going on about my _little slip _and give a girl a break? I need to sleep!"

"No kidding!" Izol snickered.

* * *

**"Okay! Time to get up, hurry up and get to Chesnaught's Tent!" **An excruciatingly loud voice drifted into the Pokémon's subconscious, reverberating around inside her head.

Robin was now perched precariously on a 'trapeze' – a stick suspended from the ceiling by a few pieces of rope – and was barely responding to the wake-up call. Well, at least until she was practically dragged off her perch by two paws' worth of sharp, hard claws raking her tail-feathers. Luckily, she was suddenly awoken by the hard yank to her tail, and didn't embarrass herself further.

"Come on, sleepy-head! Chesnaught sure doesn't like mid-morning naps, so get your butts over to the tent ASAP!" Rin was yelling rather loudly to the two new recruits. Izol had finished prising the Fletchinder off her new trapeze and was now stood to attention by the door, but you couldn't say the same for poor Robin – she had rolled over onto her back, legs in the air, tongue lolling out, clearly not quite with it.

"Ugh... why the heck are we getting up now? It can't be later than six..." she groaned, not moving apart from the occasional twitch of her toes. Izol tutted and shook her head, tapping her feet against the ground.

"Chesnaught doesn't like slackers. We need to be at roll call in less than five minutes." Rin nodded as if to second her comment.

"And the work starts at seven! We received a rescue mission yesterday from Braviary, the delivery bird. Any mission is our duty to complete, right?" Izol shot him a glare, and the Marill turned red for a second. "Anyway, yeah. Time to go!" With that he slung his pouch over his arm and trotted off out the door, followed by Izol and a yawning Ren. Just mustering the strength to flap just as far as her friend's back, she dropped off the moment her claws touched his smooth blue fur.

* * *

**"ROBIN! Get UP!" **The Fletchinder only groaned, shuffling her feet a bit. "I said, **_GET UP!_**" Ren blasted his fire, for she had landed on top of his fire-holes, and she quickly shot into the air – thankfully silent this time around. She could just make out Chesnaught's tent through hazy eyes, her vision clearing as she spread her wings, glided off Ren's back and into the tent.

Once again reaching the ladder this time she took a nosedive, flicking her wings up at the last second and fluttering gracefully to the ground. The tables were once again positioned around the room, each with a note pinned to them, and Pokémon were sat on stools and tree stumps around them. Using her sharp eyesight to her advantage, she made out the lettering on one empty table's note. Noticing the names across the top, she swooped over to get a better look, landing on a small forked stick attached to the floor presumably for her.

* * *

**Rin, Izol, Robin and Ren**

**Mission: A client has been caught in a poacher's trap and is due to be loaded into a Poké Ball and sold to humans by midday. Your task is to locate the trapped Pokémon and free her with Izol's sharp claws and lock-picking skills. All of you must prepare for battle as the poachers and ordinary trainers are bound to be in the local area.  
LOCATION: Just off Route 2, in the outer edge of Santalune Forest  
CLIENT: Sera, Vulpix, Female  
REWARD: 100 Poké, Chesto Berry, 5 Upgrade Points**

* * *

"Okay, so we have to go to Route 2 and get a Vulpix out of a cage. No problemo!" chuckled the oddly-coloured Sneasel, who by the time Robin had finished reading had seated herself on a tall stump to Robin's right. Looking up, she could see Ren sat on a stool opposite and Rin to her left, both chewing on the berries laid out before them. She gave a startled squawk of delight and dug in, shovelling the Oran Berries and Apples into her beak. By the time she had finished she was no longer zoning out every few minutes but hopping onto the table, licking the leftovers from the others' bowls.

"Yuck! You do know what you're doing, right?" Rin flinched away as she hopped to his place, digging her beak into his left-over berries.

"I thought that as a Pokémon this was completely normal!" she replied, berry juice dripping off her beak.

"Well, just because we're animalistic doesn't mean we aren't hygienic!" Izol cut in before Rin could reply. Robin quickly hopped back onto her perch, eyeing Ren's mushed remains and licking her beak pitifully. Feeling sorry for her, the Quilava leant over the table and scooped his leftovers into her bowl which she downed in a few seconds.

"**SIMMER DOWN**, everybody!" roared a booming voice from the front of the hall. Chesnaught slammed his great fists down on one table, having sat there and now stood up to address the guild. "Now! You all have rescue missions, and as always I expect them to be completed without fail! If you help out the client and manage to get back by seven, you will receive your promised reward. If not, you will be penalised!" The whole guild nodded and began to leave the hall, Robin and Ren tagging along.

* * *

"Alright, here we are! Route 2!" Rin seemed happy to have made it, seeing that the Guild was deep in the woods on the other side of the region.

"God... we walked from the woods outside Coumarine City to here before midday?" Robin asked.

"You flew. It's less tiring. And where exactly are we?" Ren chided, much to her distaste.

"Humph. Why do you need to know? Anyway, we're near Aquacorde Town. The woods up ahead connect it to Santalune City." she grumbled reluctantly. "Past Aquacorde Town is Vaniville Town, my old hometown..." she trailed off, a distant look in her eyes.

"Look. Robin. Tell you what, after we get this Sera out of the trap you can go see your mum. Alright?" Izol proposed, claws on hips and eager to get the job started.

"Okay." She scuffed her talons against the floor, looking at the miniature clouds of dust she was kicking up.

Ren's ears pricked up. "There's someone whining, this way!" Rin and Izol dashing behind, Robin took off to scout ahead and check.

Just within the treeline sat a cage below a tree. In one end sat an empty dish and the door was attached to a branch with rope. She could clearly see the pressure pad that had triggered the inmate's capture, and that inmate was a Vulpix.

Wheeling around to greet the others, she led them all over to where Sera was curled inside. Suddenly aware at the Rescue Team swarming around the cage, she glanced in all directions. On one side a Sneasel was clawing at the mechanism, a Fletchinder struggling to get her claws in on the other, and a Quilava leapt on top and scorched the ropes. Finally, a Marill lifted the grate up and over the sliding panels to set her free. "T-thank you!" she yelped over her shoulder, fleeing into Santalune Forest despite the group calling after her.

"Well, that's that. Nothing we can do about an antisocial fox." Izol joked, slapping Rin on the back. "We'd better be getting back."

"Oh no you don't! You're coming with me!" growled a gruff human voice from above, a fat pink hand grabbing Ren by the scruff of his neck and shoving him into what resembled a cat carry-case. "Starters are worth a lot of cash these days. Seeing as kids can only choose one, I can breed from you and sell you off as well!" Ren quaked and rammed his head against the bars, yelling down to his team below.

"Ooh, a fighter? Cor, you're gonna make me a fortune! I just gotta teach you a bit o' respect!" Unlatching the door and pulling the writhing Quilava out by his hind leg, the poacher pulled what resembled a shock collar from his coat pocket and slammed it onto Ren's neck. Shoving him back in the box and waving him tantalisingly before the others, the surly man prepared to leave when the bars crashed to the floor. Ren leapt out and began to dash back to the others, when electricity began coursing through his body and he fell limp to the floor. Striding over to grab him once again, remote in hand, the poacher was stopped by a young girl's voice.

"Hey! Leave them alone!"

Behind him now stood a tall girl no older than eleven, who had a Froakie sat on her shoulder. She wore rimmed glasses, and had long black hair tied back in a plait. Robin gave a chirrup of relief and delight, recognising her immediately.

"And what if I don't? You'll send your little froggie to assassinate me while I sleep? Gimme a break, you're only, what, ten?" The poacher smirked and lifted the carry case to shove Ren's limp body inside when the Froakie sprung off her shoulder and rammed its head into the arm holding the box. He let out a cry of pain and let the container clatter to the ground, where the Quilava crawled out and allowed Izol to unpick the collar.

"Okay, Freddie! Pound him again!" This time the Bubble Frog Pokémon slammed his fist into the man's stomach. He cringed and doubled over in pain. His Poké Balls caught his eye as he straightened up, grabbing one and casting it onto the field. When the light faded a black quadruped cat-like Pokémon stood on his side of the field, mewling and pawing the earth, eager to begin.

"Umbreon! Night Slash!" In an instant his Pokémon feinted to the right and slashed 'Freddie' with one paw, almost knocking him out. Robin glanced and the others, and they put a completely unplanned strategy into action.

Swooping straight at the Eeveelution, willing for flames to surround her, she pulled off a lopsided Flame Charge and damaged the opponent reasonably. The more experienced Rin let rip a powerful Aqua Jet, successfully cloaking his body in flowing water and ramming straight into his opponent's other side. Caught in the crossfire of two different attacks, the Umbreon yowled and let loose a Dark Pulse which damaged them both and pushed them away so she could recover.

Izol, however, was too fast and cut straight in with a slice to the enemy's flanks. She collapsed to the ground, fainted, and Izol wiped the thick blood off her claws. "Moves aren't always the answer!" she joked, and all four including Ren approached the girl who had helped.

She backed away slowly, fully aware that Pokémon can be dangerous, and seeing their performance and the Umbreon's blood dripping off the Sneasel's claws frightened her. Her Froakie, however, hopped down and began to chat.

"Hi! I'm Freddie. Who are you?" he asked cheerfully, grinning.

"I'm Robin," she introduced herself, "and this is Ren, Rin and Izol, my friends."

Freddie nodded solemnly. "Oh, my new trainer said her friend was called Robin. She left home a year ago with a Cyndaquil, and is supposedly now on Victory Road! She seemed so proud to call that Robin a friend..." He trailed off, still smiling.

"That's one thing, though..." Robin sighed, looking at the ground. Freddie's smile softened and he hopped over to her.

"What is it?" he croaked.

"Umm... how do I put this? Okay. I am her best friend. I got caught in a weird cave thingy, waking up near Coumarine City on a beach and I don't know what happened."

The little frog just stared for a moment, blinking. "You mean you were her friend Robin?" The Fletchinder nodded. "I need to tell her!" He hopped frantically back to his trainer, yapping frantically in her ear about Robin, but she just knelt down and let the Pokémon approach her.

"Hello there! I'm Olana. This is Freddie, and he won't shut up right now. Are you okay?" She directed the last question at Ren, who nodded and affirmed this. To her it probably sounded like 'Quilava, Quil!', but it was the best he could do. "You guys seem rather friendly!" In agreement Robin flapped onto Olana's shoulder, chirping 'Fletch. Fletch!' when the girl would listen.

"Well, I think I'd better be off. Will you four be alright alone? You know, I know you'll be okay, seeing how you all held off that poacher! Bye then!" She stood up, letting the Froakie hop back on her shoulder, and Robin fluttered to the ground. She was sad to see her friend go, knowing they might not see each other again, and turned away towards the others.

"You did say I could go to Vaniville! So?" she chirped, faking happiness. The others, buying it, agreed to head back and wait for her to catch up. She kicked off the ground, circled once and burst up through the canopy to fly in the opposite direction – towards her home.

Below her the streets of Aquacorde unfolded like a map, slate grey pavements and shops along the centre of town. A small plaza lay on either side of the gate to Route 1, complete with chairs and tables. Landing on the pavement and hopping along. A few Fletchling asked where she was from as they passed by, which she did not answer, and stopped at the gate. Taking a deep breath and exhaling loudly, scaring the little birds stalking her away, she stepped onto the path.

Along the short path her head filled with memories, like the day she first trod this path with her new Cyndaquil, and the time she returned to show Olana the free Lucario that'd been practically handed to her along the way along with its Lucarionite. She walked slowly, taking in every inch of the path, every branch of the trees, and looking at the trainers with new Poké Balls strapped to their belts that practically ignored her.

The gateway to her home lay ahead, and as she hopped through the wooden doors she got a couple of awkward stares from the townsfolk she once knew and loved. Approaching a few and getting a couple of pats from the older citizens, she gulped deeply staring into her own yard, at her own front door.

Tapping on the wooden door with her beak, she was answered by her mother. She looked very surprised to see her, and that's not unusual seeing as she was barely recognisable. 'Fletch! Chinder chi!' was all the woman heard as the 'uninvited guest' hopped into the front room.

"Hello, visitor! Who's your owner?" cheeped her family pet Fletchling, greeting her.

"I'm Robin. Nice to see you again, Fletchy!" she replied coolly.

The little bird cocked its head to the side. "You mean you're Robin?" The Fletchinder nodded.

"It's a long story. I just thought I'd drop by and see how the place is running without me!"

Fletchy turned pale and shook its little head. "Oh no, this is bad! I can't tell your Mother, she can't understand me! Oh wait... You'd better get out fast, here she comes with a Poké Ball and some Max Repel..."

This had happened before. Her mother had sprayed the stuff at a Scatterbug that had wandered in and captured it before giving it to the Professor to study as a 'gift'. She had no time to react as Fletchy was summoned back into its ball and the Repel was sprayed everywhere. She coughed and doubled over. "Now I see... why this stuff... is so damn effective!" she choked, before red light enveloped her and everything went black.

* * *

Oh god. Captured by her mother. Damn, that's harsh. Anyway, there's chapter three! So the gathering has happened, they've gone on their first Rescue Mission and met Robin's human friend. Olana is my OC and the only human, frankly, so I just thought I'd make her up and throw her in there to help the chapter make sense. Well, that's it for now! If anything's wrong with your OC, let me know and I'll fix it! Elin belongs to OPFan37, Kaito is from Rek-san, and Sera belongs to Spirals of Happiness. I think that's it for OCs this chapter, anyway! Thank you all for reading, and have a good week!


	4. The PCO: Captured and Recaptured

Okay, here is chapter four! The reason this is so quick is because this was originally joined on to the prior chapter, but I judged it was too long on its own about halfway through this section. It is basically carrying on, as always, and this chapter introduces one new OC. So happy reading, people!

* * *

Robin's mother released her Talonflame, the mother of Fletchy, preparing to travel to Lumiose to get the Fletchinder checked out. "Okay, use Fly!" she commanded and the hawk took off, soaring to the north and the bright lights of Lumiose.

The Talonflame, Coals, touched down right in front of the South Pokémon Centre where it was returned to its ball. "Good job, Coals," she muttered to herself before taking a simple walk across the road to Sycamore's Pokémon Lab.

"Hello?" she called, aiming this at a man in a lab coat sat at a desk. He looked up and noticed her, smiling and beckoning her over. "I have a Pokémon that wandered into my home again, and I have it here. I know you appreciate help with your studies!" she laughed, and the Professor grinned.

"Thanks! What species is it?" he questioned, turning the Ball over in his palm.

"I think it's a Fletchinder. My daughter had one before it evolved." Professor Sycamore's smile widened and he thanked her once more before she turned and walked away. "Bye!" she called back, stepping into the elevator.

* * *

**Time Skip – One Hour Later**

* * *

_(Italics = scientists' reactions)_

The darkness faded as Robin slowly came to, noting her surroundings. The room she was in had mirrored walls on all sides, the floor and ceiling were metal. She was trapped!

_"I've never seen a Pokémon we've brought in analyse its surroundings like this before. All the others have panicked or attempted to break out! It's showing signs of great intelligence!"_

There was something suspicious about the walls, and she hopped up to peck one of the mirrors. Her beak bounced off and it felt like glass. Mirrored glass. Her every move was being watched by who-knows-who, recording her actions and noting her every move. This was going progressively downhill by the second.

_"Now look! It's realised we're here, just by the sound of the glass! This is getting better – we now know this one is incredibly intelligent! Almost to the level of a human's, in fact!"_

She paced around the room, pecking at the mirrors all around, hearing the reverberating clang. Eventually, stopping at a point where the glass seemed thinner, she pecked not just once but many more times in the same place until...

CRACK.

The glass splintered, cracks spreading over the surface until it was a network of straight lines criss-crossing over the wall. With one final kick from her talons she smashed the whole thing, swooping out and zipping straight for the door.

"Oh no you don't!" One man grabbed her tail and dragged her to the floor, where he pinned her down and clamped his hands around her wings. Unable to move and unable to fight him she glanced around nervously, shaking just picturing what might happen.

The man holding her pushed a large white door open with his elbows, entering a thin room where scientists bustled about moving crates and trays of syringes around. A sign above them read "Unusual Specimen Study Department" and the edges of the room had large slots in them, just big enough to hold one of the crates that some scientists were moving each, and many were already filled. She watched in horror as a struggling Bunnelby was dropped into a crate, and a woman fixed the lid shut. Carrying the box to a hole in the wall she slotted it in, taking care to push the button to the right of the opening. In an instant metal bars shot across and into place, imprisoning the poor thing for good. Even if it could break the wooden crate it couldn't get out of the bars.

Robin quivered even more uncontrollably as the scientist turned a corner to be faced by one of the dreaded wooden containers. "In you pop!" he laughed, shoving her roughly into the crate. She watched through the slats as she was lifted off the table and away – into a whole new corridor filled halfway already. Peering fearfully through the gaps, she caught a glimpse of the bars scraping against wood before she blacked out. Her last thought was, _I'm pretty sure this isn't the Pokémon Lab anymore._

* * *

**Time Skip – 12 Hours Later**

* * *

The poor bird was still unconscious when the bars were retracted and her container was dragged out roughly. The wooden crate toppled to the floor, smashing on the tiles and leaving a dazed and confused Robin lying there.

"Oh, there you are!"

The voice belonged to a Zorua, who had leaped down from a stack of empty crates and was now sat licking his paw. "Chesnaught was worried, so he sent me on the case."

Robin gave a cough and stood up. "How did you find me?" The black fox rolled his eyes and tried to explain.

"Well, it was simple really. First I asked your team, who said you had gone to see your human mother in Vaniville. I caught her Fletchling and asked it a favour, and it agreed. So I transformed into it and spied on your mum, and I caught her telling a visitor how she'd given a Fletchinder to Professor Sycamore. So then I let her pet go, and I flew off still in Fletchling form to Lumiose where I heard a commotion outside the lab. They were saying that all the Poké Balls had been stolen and that must include yours, right? So after that I heard that they were being taken to the Pokémon Captivity Organisation Base. I broke in here and knocked out a scientist, transforming into him, and I told the others that there was an urgent meeting. Lastly I snuck in here and, ultimately, found you. Easy peasy." The fox barely took a breath in between talking and Robin was mesmerised for a moment. "Oh! And I found this. Turns out they knocked you out and ran some tests."

Robin panicked for a minute, reading the papers.

* * *

**Test Subject No. 003427**

**Species: Fletchinder  
Gender: Female  
Estimated Level: 27  
Scientist: Dr. Hubert Wilson**

**First Test: Mirror Room**

_The experiment was a success, and we have received sufficient proof that Pokémon are actually extremely intelligent – from this one specimen! It analysed its surroundings, figured out where it was just by the sound of the glass, and broke out of the chamber by judging whether the glass was thin enough in a particular place. This one is slippery but I am not willing to give this fine specimen up as easily._

**Second Test: Sleeping Patterns**

_In the sleeping patterns test we hooked up its brain to electrodes that show us what happens in its mind, filtering the real remembered images from fantasy, and the results were fantastic! We could clearly see human images here from not just a Pokémon's point of view but a human's, and it later sees itself as a Pokémon conversing with others and living in a huge sort of camp! This is a groundbreaking development! The images are so clear they cannot be anything other than true, although I have my doubts about being human. It can't be true that this subject is a human in another body... can it?_

**Third Test: Bodily Analysis**

_The subject's body is highly intriguing. It is so skilled at flying, yet its wings have barely been used, and its feet are stronger than most of its kind. Also, on its back near its tail lies a crescent-shaped patch of feathers that are slightly darker than its ordinary red. What does this mean? Some of the barriers of doubt that it is, in fact, a human have faded but until further studies there is no proof in our favour._

* * *

"They've seen what goes on inside my head _and _inspected my whole body? I've never met people so perverted in my whole life, all twelve years of it!" The Zorua laughed, and as it did so it copied her body shape and structure, but keeping his dark blue headband and scarf. Even the black ring, wires wrapped tight around it, clamped firmly to her left leg. Robin didn't even notice until her duplicate leapt into the air, hovering around above. Telling herself that there was nothing to worry about, she followed the replica out of the door and away.

"I don't think you told me your name!" she called down as the other Fletchinder tried to keep up.

"The name's Zorro. I know yours, seeing as it was plastered on my table this morning." Zorro smirked, grinning up at her.

"Umm... what's with the thing on my leg?" Robin was ever curious as to why these people kept a ring on her without any signs of electricity or anything.

"I have no idea. Probably just identification."

"So they can identify me if I go near there again?"

"Pretty much. Can't be much else, unless their technology has advanced way past our knowledge."

The two flew on, and Robin kept asking questions. "Who are these snooping imbeciles, anyway?" Zorro looked thoughtful for a minute before answering.

"The Pokémon in Captivity Organisation... or the PCO. Their goal is to prove Pokémon are as smart as humans and they believe we will rise up against them unless all of our kind is in captivity. Any Pokémon who go in there never come back out – so I think you're the first. Lucky you!" Robin gazed off into the distance, daydreaming. "What's up?"

She took a deep breath. "A while ago, while I was staying at home for a while, some guys calling themselves the PCO stormed the town. I and my mother hid our Poké Balls and pretended to be innocent town-dwellers, and they passed us by, but most others' Pokémon were snatched from them and taken away." The Zorua listened for a bit, before exhaling.

"I'm not surprised. They started out convincing people, and now they're taking Pokémon by force. And even from the lab! It's bad you got into the laboratory in the first place, but when I found out about the PCO break-in I needed to have my wits about me at all times."

The rest of the flight was silent apart from the beating of wings, Robin occasionally pulling at the ring which embedded itself further in the more she tugged at it. Something seemed off about that device on her leg, and she couldn't get it off her mind.

As the pair flew on, gliding on the wind currents, Zorro spotted a wild Fearow and (preferring it to a Fletchinder) copied its form using Illusion without missing a wingbeat. "Much better..." he sighed, twisting and diving in midair. On the horizon a sliver of sapphire ocean glimmered faintly, and although she had a severe disliking of water, the slice of blue reminded her she was nearly back.

_Later_

Beating his wings a few times and landing on the grass before the Guild's gate, Zorro resumed his normal form and the illusion faded. Robin followed, much to the relief of Chesnaught who had come out of his tent to greet them.

"Oh, thank Arceus! Well, that's something you won't be doing again in a hurry, okay?" he instructed. The small bird shuffled her feet a bit and looked guilty. "So you went to visit your human mother, fully aware she doesn't recognise you, and got captured and brought to the Lab in Lumiose. On the day of the break-in!" The large Pokémon scolded her and inspected the ring on her leg, tutting and plucking at it with his fingers. "Well, there's a problem. I sincerely hope that thing's just for identification." After checking her over one more time he allowed her into the Guild again, still suspicious.

"Rin and Izol have gone on their mission for today, and Ren is allowed to stay here. Do head back to your tent, and have the day off to recover. That's not just me being nice, it's orders. Okay?" Zorro explained in his normal fox-like form. A dark blue headband covered his forehead, and a long scarf of the same colour was draped around his neck decorated with a crescent-moon insignia. He nodded as if to acknowledge her before parting ways, padding towards his own tent.

* * *

"Oh my god, Robin! What the heck happened back there!?" Ren practically yelled straight in Robin's ear as she slumped down on the floor.

"Alright, alright! It's a long story! Just listen, okay?" The fiery rodent promptly plopped himself down on a pile of gear nearby, ready to listen.

"Right. After the mission, I paid what I thought was a completely harmless visit to my human mother's house. She sprayed Max Repel in my face and caught me in a Poké Ball, taking me to what I presumed to be the Pokémon Lab in Lumiose City. However I chose a _great _day to be there as there was a break-in, and all the Poké Balls were stolen – even mine.

"I got let out in a room full of mirrored glass, where they ran some tests. I smashed the glass and broke outta there, but one caught me, shoved me in a crate and imprisoned me in a cage – still in the wooden box! I could barely breathe and the wood stank! As I slept they supposedly drugged me to elongate my sleep time, then looked at the images in my mind and inspected my whole body," she was interrupted by Ren muttering 'perverts' under his breath, "and after that I can't remember. Some Zorua from the guild found me and got me out of that god-damned place."

Ren exhaled deeply, taking it all in. "Man, those perverts shouldn't be allowed to roam free outside a prison yard." The Fletchinder nodded, pecking at the flashing lights on her leg band.

"Oh, and did I mention this thing? According to Zorro, this band might be a number of things. Worst case scenario it's a tracker, but hopefully it's for identification at the very worst." She indicated the black thing clamped to her left leg, which Ren stared at briefly.

"It's a tracker!" he yelled right in her ear, sending her jolting three feet in the air. "God, we need to get you away from here! You could ruin the Guild! Destroy the homes of many!" Ren was frantic, glancing from side to side and trembling. Robin, however, looked shocked.

"What? How do you know?" she cawed, hyperventilating and glancing around.

"There! Right there on the side! It reads G.P.S!" She looked confused for a second. "Global Positioning System! They'll find the Guild! Kill us all!" The agitated Pokémon frantically shot an Ember at the ring, only succeeding to send a powerful jolt of electricity into the bird's lower body. She screeched in pain and collapsed, bolts of electricity fizzling up her thin legs and into her torso. "Oh god... I'm sorry... What now?"

The Fletchinder, electricity still coursing through her body, staggered to her feet. "I need to go...and get away from here!" she groaned, limping towards the door.

"Come on! You're weak! I'll carry you! I'd rather us both get caught than let my closest friend in this world get experimented on unreasonably! How would I sleep at night?" Besides," he continued, smiling warmly, "we're a team. And I don't think you're going to have to rely on an illusion-mastering fox to get you out alone." Robin grinned weakly, now on the floor. She grimaced and tried to bear the shockwaves pulsing within her.

"I'll write a note to the others, explaining things. You tell Chesnaught, and see if he'll supply things for us to take and maybe survive a bit longer out there." Using her free leg, she kicked some dust over the band and the stinging stopped. "Ground is immune to Electric. So I should have known this thing was inspired by a Pokémon move. As long as I keep kicking dirt on it, I should be fine."

Ren nodded, reluctantly turning and running as fast as his paws could carry him towards Chesnaught's tent, straining himself to run faster and faster as he careered around tents and almost ran over a couple of members on his way. It only took him a second to skid to a halt across from the tent, eyes wide at the situation before him.

Humans, armed with red and white balls, attacking the Guild.

Chesnaught was around their height and began swinging his fists at the infiltrators, knocking out a few in one blow. Looking down and noticing Ren, he yelled, "They've taken the guards! I broke out of the ball, but they weren't so lucky! Get Robin and get away from here, both of you! Go!" The terrified Quilava had nothing to do but whirl around and run back the way he'd come, panting heavily. The last thing he saw through the corner of his eye was a Poké Ball clicking, Chesnaught nowhere in sight.

"ROBIN!" he yelled, skidding into the tent to find her gone with nothing but a note. Picking it up in his forepaws and skimming it over, he was shocked.

* * *

_I've gone to give Chesnaught a hand. If I'm gone, don't come after me. I've never been one to give up that easily, and nothing's stopping me from escaping again!_

_-Robin_

* * *

"My god, not again..." he muttered, throwing the note down. He managed to make it back to the scene just in time to see the humans walk away, most of the Poké Balls full, and a certain Fletchinder in a cage being held tightly by a grunt.

"Seriously? All this, again?" Ren swore under his breath just as the same Zorua from earlier seemingly appeared out of thin air. He cursed once again and turned to face Zorro, who was smirking.

"Your girlfriend went to help the Guildmaster and got caught again. I saw the mud fall from her ring as she flew, and collapsed right under their noses."

"First off, she's not my girlfriend. I don't feel affection for flaming birds. And second, she's being irrational again! It was inevitable she was going to be taken! Stupid bird!"

The Zorua cocked its head to the side. "You do realise you're talking about your friend and equal?"

Ren swore. "Damn. I do forget I'm on the same level as her, and you, and every Pokémon on this earth. Sorry 'bout that."

"No offence taken. But half of the members are gone, along with the Guildmaster, plus there's the fact half the place is trampled as if a herd of Donphan just came along and walked all over it!" Zorro sighed. "I hid myself with my illusions, but others weren't so lucky."

The black fox pricked up his ears to hear startled yells from returning Rescue Teams. Amongst them were Rin and Izol, who spotted Ren and hurried over immediately. "Arceus above! What happened!" exclaimed a shocked Izol, shaking the Quilava so hard he nearly chucked up.

"Robin came back. She'd been captured by her mother and taken to the Pokémon Lab, but the lab got broken into by some... PCO whatchamacallit guys. They took her Poké Ball and ran some tests, like the little perverts they are, and she would have been a lab rattata for life if Zorro hadn't gotten in there." The Zorua in question smirked. "She returned wearing a ring on her leg which turned out to be a tracking device. I accidentally triggered its electric shock function when I attacked it, and it shocked her loads.

"Anyway, we decided we needed to get her away and save the camp. So I went to get Chesnaught, but when I got here these PCO people were trying to capture him and get to Robin! He got caught but when I arrived at the tent the silly bird was gone, leaving a note saying she'd gone to help Chesnaught. It turned out the shocks came back on, sending her falling out of the sky right under their noses. She's currently on the way to their base."

The result was mixed emotions. Zorro looked solemn, as he had done since the start of Ren's tale. Izol slumped to the floor, staring at the decrepit Guild in horror, whilst Rin looked angry and determined.

"She got taken there to be studied, and she isn't some guinea pig to be experimented on! They probably know everything about her, right? So isn't it our duty to rescue her? Even if it means handing ourselves in to do it!" Rin shouted, the tuft on the top of his round head bobbing as he leapt up. Izol followed suit, unsheathing her claws.

"Y'know, I can get anyone out of anywhere. So, here's the plan! Zorro, you get us all in there with your illusions," the Zorua nodded, but looked annoyed, "then Rin can take out the guards with his fighting skills. Ren and I can go search the compound for where they're holding everyone, and free not just the Guild but every Arceus-damned Pokémon in there!"

Rin clapped his paws, Ren cheered and Zorro seemed sulky. "Why do you have to make the rules?" he asked, irritated.

"Huh, it just makes sense. Besides, do you have a better plan, Mr Illusionary Foxface?" The Zorua couldn't think of a comeback for this, so he just unleashed a Fury Swipes upon the Sneasel. She barely flinched and ignored the fact anything even happened.

"So? What are you slackers waiting for! Time to go!"

* * *

_Pokémon in Captivity Organisation Base_

The limp Robin was roughly shoved into a tiny cage with barely enough room to turn around, Guild members being released and thrown into similar containers all around her. Watching in horror as rings were fastened onto their legs and arms, she could do nothing but stare at the cruelty. She was more afraid of what the Pokémon would do to her, however, than what the PCO would do with all of them.

The cages were stacked up high, hers opposite the others' for easy reach, and a thousand pairs of eyes burned into her as the container was thrown against the concrete where it bounced multiple times. Most of the Pokémon just shook their heads and turned away, at least until a choice few were taken out and placed by her own.

The Pokémon on her side of the room were the fighters, the ones who stayed to fight and not run. Many of the humans had been picked out, Elin and Kaito amongst them, but right beside her Chesnaught slumped to the iron floor and sighed.

"I should have known. I cannot blame you, Robin, although a lot of evidence points to that conclusion. You couldn't have purposefully come here, and led them to us." The large Pokémon spoke solemnly, aware of the desperate glances thrown his way. He pummelled the bars of his cage only to release a jolt of electricity to the black ring now encircling his right arm, grimacing as the volts coursed through him.

Robin sighed and lay down. "But it is my fault. I should have known that I'd be caught, and I came back without thinking. I'm no better than a traitor." Chesnaught glanced at the bird, full of pity for her.

"No. Don't blame yourself."

"But who else could have done this? I was the only one to be caught, and I was the one to return with the tracker ring! They put this on me so they can find you if I was to return, and I did! I brought this upon myself, and, regrettably, all of you!" Her desperate sobs were raised to a screech as the ring activated, electricity flowing up her legs and into her lower body. As she stifled a tear, Chesnaught couldn't help but feel sorry for her. Her first three days of being a Pokémon, and she was in a cage with a shock ring on her leg. Not many born as a Pokémon would have to go through this, let alone a human.

Tiredness slowly took its toll on all of the Pokémon in the room, each in turn giving in to sleep and drifting off. Although their slumber would be uneasy, the morning would be ten times worse, and many realised there was no other option.

* * *

Okay. This chapter is very long, and it took a while to finish, but here it is! Chapter Four! Before I go, however, I have decided to do something with my footnotes.

I'd like you all to meet Robin!

_Robin: _Helloooo!

So yes, the main characters will be joining me here in the Writing Studio.

_Ren: _What about me?

I just said that all the main guys will be here. So feel free, my fiery little friend. Anyway, guys, that's how it's going to be from now on! Also look out for my mates in Legend of the Whisperers (when it comes off hiatus) and Escape to Reality!

Next I am going to work on Escape to Reality Chapter 2, as that one's just started, and there you go. See you all next time, guys!


	5. Escapes, Trainers, Zoos and Mishaps

_Robin: _Hello, peoples of Fanfiction!

That was my line!

_Robin: _Humph. You get the best things to say.

It's not my fault!

_Robin: _Actually, it is. You're the author.

Point taken. Anyway, here's the chapter! Enjoy it! And, seeing as Robin is so eager, why don't you tell everyone the disclaimer? After all, I know everyone already knows this.

_Robin: _Alright, alright! PokeThatPokemon does not own Pokémon. If she did she would have a swimming pool filled with cash and I would probably still be human, as she wouldn't have the time to write this because she'd be designing a Mega Flygon – which she thinks that buggy dragon deserves. You know, that wouldn't be half bad!

Okay, we get it! I think this is the first time I've done a disclaimer because I can't be bothered really, and Robin is the perfect spokesperson to unload my unwanted lines onto.

_Robin: _*storms away*

Suit yourself! Here I go!

* * *

The concrete-walled room was overwhelmed with an eerie silence, nobody daring to make a noise. A single sound out of any 'mon was enough to set the rings off, and Robin learned that the hard way. Pain still stinging her lower body, she slumped to the iron floor and cried inside. She thought she could hide and be safe with Chesnaught, but she had led the enemy right to him.

A door in one end of the building opened and a few scientists entered the room, muttering to each other about the 'exciting development'. Feigning sleep, she watched out of the corner of her eye as the cage next door was opened and Chesnaught hauled out. It was too much. The sight of her Guildmaster being lugged around, dragged along the floor, was enough to set her off.

"CHESNAUGHT!" she screeched, startling the men holding him and awakening every Pokémon in the room. Staggering to his feet and swinging his fist at the scientists, the Guildmaster broke loose and ripped the doors off any cage he could reach. Robin could physically see the miniature lightning bolts rippling over his body, but he held out and lumbered over as fast as he could.

Gripping the doors of both Elin and Robin's cage together, he tore open the sides and let them hop out as fast as they could. Lifting off and circling around, kicking some of the higher cages to the ground, she then made her way to the door. One problem was, although all but the two unconscious scientists were no longer around, they definitely were smart. Anyone to cross the threshold of the building was subjected to the worst shocks they'd experienced yet.

"Marshtomp!" Chesnaught yelled, attempting to stand and ultimately crashing back to the floor again. The Mud Fish Pokémon, not feeling the shock himself due to his Ground-typing, reacted quickly, unleashing a wave of Mud-Slap which coated everyone in the room and dispelled the electricity. "Let's go!" the Guildmaster ordered and the mud-coated Guild stampeded for the door, slowly but surely approaching the main entrance.

* * *

_Outside _

"That Pidgeot was very kind to let you do this, Zorro." The fox, now a huge hawk-like bird, grinned as the three atop his back peered over the edge of his wings.

"Eh, I have my methods." This particular scheme involved pretending to be injured until a Flying-Type came along, then asked it if he could disguise himself as it claiming his friend was taken and he was almost killed. His wound illusions worked very well, and attracted a Pidgeot which was too happy to oblige. Yep, Zorro was a compulsive liar indeed.

Izol lay back, stretching out and allowing the wind to ruffle her fur. Her golden feathers and ear waved from side-to-side in the breeze. Soon they would arrive at the PCO Base, where the Guild would hopefully not have been harmed.

* * *

Chesnaught led the stampede through the lab, himself charging at the front with Marshtomp taking up the rear. The latter was constantly directing mud and earth onto the rings of the Guild, taking care to spot those affected and coat them once again.

Robin flew low just behind Chesnaught, whom she crashed into with a loud screech as he stopped dead. Pressed against by tough white spines in one direction and slammed against by a clumsy Mightyena in the other, she found herself choked as the two Pokémon crushed her small body. The Mightyena, however, had no good feelings for Robin whatsoever and didn't help her situation by scratching at her and deliberately shoving her further onto the Guildmaster's spikes. Chesnaught whipped around and rescued her in the nick of time, a slow drip of blood darkening her chest.

"Nothing but a scratch," she assured herself, landing on his shoulder only to be faced by something she never wanted to see at that precise moment. Grunts lined up behind an army of Pokémon, stood there ready to fight.

Barking out a number of commands, the PCO's Pokémon leapt into battle. Robin easily took down a Grovyle with a Flame Charge and moved on to help Chesnaught with a Scizor he was having trouble with. Pulling off a few more rounds of Flame Charge and eventually fainting the tall bug, leaving Chesnaught free to tackle some others. She zipped off to fight some more, enjoying the thrill of battle.

With every Flame Charge she performed, the world around her slowed down more and more until the movements of others seemed so slow she could have sidestepped around any attack regardless of how fast. This was proved when a Bullet Punch was launched her way, and she neatly dived out of the way and circled the punch once before rushing at her adversary cloaked in a blue aura. "Brave Bird?" she wondered to herself, before taking off again and trying out her new move.

Diving in to strike an unaware Hitmonchan with blades of razor-sharp compressed air, Razor Wind, she caught Chesnaught in the corner of her eye whacking a few grunts over the head. Turning away from the oversized stag beetle, she aimed her blades at a human instead and knocked him out cold.

Screeching and recovering for a Flame Charge, Robin ignited her feathers with her internal fire and swooped in on another. She didn't see the ball sailing through the air, and in her moment of recovery a flash of blinding red light enveloped her and encased her within.

Chesnaught didn't see the human sprint in to grab the ball, and he couldn't escape the withdrawal beam from the ball he was captured in before. All around him Pokémon were being sucked in to their capsules and taken away. This time nobody would be so stupid as to leave them in a cage on their own.

* * *

Robin awoke in what she deemed to be a forest, lush trees filled with berries all around her. Nobody else was in sight. Looking up at the sky, she could see a faint digital ripple covering the blue expanse. _This must be inside the Poké Ball_, she thought to herself. _Maybe it's not so bad in here after all._

The simulated sun slowly climbed higher in the sky, and sitting around soon got boring. She tested her wings out, and they worked fine. Lifting off and circling around her section of forest, she tried to fly away only to be stopped by a barrier in a sphere-like fashion around the woods. _I get it! I've been shrunk, and this place is the inside! _Everything was starting to come together now. _But why didn't this happen when my mum did this? _

She plucked a few more berries from a bush and perched in a tree to eat. None of the small fruits satisfied her hunger, however, and she realised that they were just figments of her imagination. Disheartened, Robin reluctantly tucked her head under one wing and slipped uneasily into sleep, thinking of her friends and what would happen to them.

* * *

Blinding light invaded her dreams and prised her eyes open, hearing Pokémon cries from nearby. Just across from where she found herself stood a Riolu, facing her with teeth bared and a glow in its paws that could only be Focus Blast. Turning round, all she saw was a girl she recognised.

Recognised from the woods.

Recognised from home.

Recognised from their childhood.

"Okay! Phoenix, Flame Charge!" Robin looked at her oddly for a bit. "Oh, you're meant to fly at that thing! You know? With the fire on your body?" The Fletchinder feigned confusion, and Olana facepalmed. "God, I should have known Dad would have given me a dumb Pokémon like this..."

Robin was outraged. She promptly ignited her body but didn't move, and Olana stared. In this moment of awkwardness the Riolu made its getaway, scrambling into the shrubbery and away. The girl watched it leave, disheartened. "Damn!" she swore, slumping onto the floor. She pulled two more Poké Balls off her belt, releasing a Frogadier and Skiddo.

"Oh, hey! Freddie, right? I didn't recognise you for a minute there! And you are?" she asked the Skiddo, who shied away and blushed.

"I'm Oakie. N-nice to meet you!" Freddie just stared.

"It's not you again, is it? Damn, you pop up everywhere." He rolled his eyes and hopped over to Olana who greeted him warmly.

"Yes, we're good now, aren't we? Now we have fire, water, and a grass type! We can take on the world!" Freddie nodded and indicated Robin, jabbering about her past. Olana patted his head and walked over to the other two where she sat down on the grass.

"I'm Robin. Nice to meet you, Oakie!" Oakie tilted her head to the side.

"Didn't Olana call you Phoenix?" she whispered.

"Umm... yeah, but my real name from before is Robin." she replied.

"Best forget old names now. Call yourself Phoenix and only listen to Phoenix, otherwise she'll get impatient with you. I had that problem, everyone used to just call me Skiddo. It took me ages to adjust." The goat smiled faintly and trotted off towards Olana, bleating for food.

Robin fluttered over and landed next to Oakie, chirping. "Oh, hi Phoenix! Your new name is Phoenix, by the way, if that's why you didn't listen earlier. I'm Olana, but call me Olly, and this is Freddie and Oakie." The Frogadier gave her the evils, but Oakie bleated and smiled again. "I'm sure you'll all grow on each other. Now I was going to catch a Riolu, so Phoenix, I need you to listen." Robin chirped and flapped her wings to show her interest.

"Tomorrow morning, we go and catch one of those sneaky Riolu. So you all get some good rest in your Poké Balls!" With that, Oakie and Freddie disappeared in a flash of red leaving 'Phoenix' behind.

"Phoenix, do you want to sleep outside the ball tonight? We need to get to know each other a bit more anyway." Robin responded by promptly tucking her head in, pressing close to Olly who had rolled out her sleeping bag. "I'm taking that as a yes. 'Night, Phoenix." Olly rolled over and fell asleep almost instantly, her newest Pokémon left awake.

She pulled her head out from under her wing and gazed up into the sky, looking at the multitude of stars unfolding above her. The ring was no longer clamped to her ankle, but there were too many things gone wrong in her life to count – like stars. Chesnaught was likely still in the PCO Base being experimented on, Ren, Izol and Rin could be anywhere and she was part of a conundrum – try and escape to help her friends or officially give in to her best mate-become-Trainer and never go back. The latter seemed unthinkable, because it meant hundreds of Pokémon could get hurt and kept in captivity all the rest of their lives.

It was a lot to think about.

* * *

With a flash of blinding light, Chesnaught was let out of his ball and into what looked like a jungle. Apart from the fact that the walls were painted and the plants were artificial, it could have passed as the real thing. Oh, and the thick bulletproof glass wall on one side of the room. Whipping around, he caught a glimpse of a Poké Ball in a holder being retracted back into the walls. _His _Poké Ball.

"Umm... Hello?" A small Snivy stared up at him, eyes wide. Elin. From behind the plants, many other Grass-types emerged and greeted Chesnaught, all looking at least remotely dreary and miserable. Not to mention thin. Even the Torterra looked so slim he could have passed as ill.

"Yeah... um... Welcome. This is the PCO Zoo." A Bayleef was the spokesperson this time. "You really don't want to be here. At all." Chesnaught gulped. "We were raided from labs, taken from our trainers and experimented on before we came here. The food rations are so low we only get about one slice of apple each. Per day."

"Where is this place? And why a jungle?" he asked, trying to keep a straight face while inside, he was panicking. Elin sidled closer to him and he relaxed slightly, knowing there was at least one familiar face around.

"This is the Grass Starters enclosure. Over there," Bayleef replied, trotting over to the glass, "are the Water and Fire Starters displays. Every day tourists come here and gawk at us through the glass."

The Water Starters pen was mainly water and sand, with a deep pool to swim in and a beach where many Water-types lay looking sad. The fire pen was lit by heat lamps and composed of artificial red rocks, accompanies by fake fire and many Pokémon of the fire element moping around. Everything about this place looked dreary and dull.

"The PCO believe all Pokémon should be kept in captivity. Not even in Poké Balls, just in cages. We're going to spend the rest of our lives here until we die of starvation, boredom, or just sheer old age. That's how the old Chesnaught went. You're replacing him." the Torterra rumbled, coughing. That worried both Elin and Chesnaught, and the smaller one tried to smile but failed.

"Oh, here comes Opening Time. Act like you're starving and weak, and hopefully a rich kind man will come and buy us out of here!" suggested a Bulbasaur huddled in the corner.

"Maybe, Bulbasaur. Maybe one day." The tone of the Venusaur, presumably his mother, was heavy-hearted. "I want a better world for us. A place where I can raise my baby in peace. Is that too much to ask?" she screamed to nobody in particular, just as a wave of people with cameras barged through the door and were upon them like bees to honey.

What was a Pokémon to do?

* * *

Zorro touched down by the entrance to the PCO, the illusion fast fading until nothing remained but the small black fox. The three other Pokémon fell out of the thin air and onto his back, knocking the wind out of him. "Remind me to revert back _after _everyone has got off!" he coughed, staggering to his feet and cloaking them all in an illusion that would render them invisible.

Opening the door and creeping inside, the four slowly manoeuvred around the legs of PCO employees and into the door of an office as the worker opened the door to leave. Ren read the papers on the desk and relayed the information.

"Here! It says, 'Chesnaught: transferred to PCO Zoo!" Zorro widened his eyes. "And Robin's been... Oh look, given to Trainer ID: 00021863. How are we meant to find her by a bunch of numbers?"

Rin shrugged. "She's been given to a trainer, right? So that trainer will be on one of the main routes or in a town! Zorro can get us there!" The Zorua tutted and rolled his eyes.

"Fine. But bear in mind, just because I can create solid illusions doesn't mean I'm your instant transportation method." Ren nodded and slipped back into Zorro's illusion, concealing himself and making his way out. First they would grab Chesnaught, then rescue Robin from her trainer.

* * *

"Mel, this has gone too far. You were in charge of sorting out the Pokémon, and you gave away our prized specimen to your daughter!" roared Jayden, the leader of the PCO. Mel, the worker in charge of the Pokémon distribution, was stood before his desk, red-faced and embarrassed.

"I-I'm sorry, sir, I can get it back!" he stammered, faced by the fuming leader.

"You'd better. Or you lose your job...

"And all your Pokémon."

Mel gulped. How was he supposed to explain this to his daughter?

* * *

"Rise and shine, Phoenix! Time to get up now!" Olly called in her ear.

"Mmf." she grumbled, uninterested.

"Come on, Phoenix! It's our Riolu-catching day!"

"Fletch!" was the reply, and she groggily staggered to her feet. Olly grinned and let her two other Pokémon out.

"Okay, Freddie and Oakie! You need to sit this one out, I'm afraid. Phoenix? What've you found?"

"Fletch! Fletchinder!" came the reply. Robin pointed to an Abra sat sleeping in the grass.

"You want to take it on?" Robin nodded and flapped into the air. "Phoenix! Flame Charge!" Zipping down at light speed wreathed in flames, 'Phoenix' struck the Pokémon in the chest, and it tumbled backwards. "Poké Ball!"

The capsule hit its mark, encasing the Abra. It shook and quivered, but eventually gave in and clicked.

"Chinder!" Robin pecked at the button. Olly cottoned on and pushed it with her forefinger, releasing the Abra from its ball.

"Ab?" it questioned, looking around. Olly smiled and brainstormed for a minute.

"I know! I'll call you Psych!" The small brown Pokémon seemed uneasy, but happy somewhat. Olly sat down again to bond with the newest team member, leaving the others in the background.

"What was that about?" Freddie asked, curious.

"Abra can communicate via telepathy, correct?" Robin replied. The others both nodded. "Well, if I got Psych to tell Olly who I am, she might release me!"

Oakie looked confused. "Why do you want to be released? Don't you like it here with Olly? You're with your best friend and everything!"

Robin shook her head. "You don't understand. I have three friends out looking for me, and many others are in trouble. The future of many relies on my release. I need to be free to help them." Oakie nodded solemnly and Freddie followed. Soon, Psych floated over.

"Hello, who are you?" he asked, scrutinizing the three. Robin straightened up and opened her beak to say something, but Freddie shoved her out of the way.

"I'm Freddie, Olly's starter. The Skiddo is Oakie, and the weird little bird is _Phoenix._" He said the last word whilst shooting a killer stare at the bird, who promptly interrupted.

"Actually, my name's Robin. Phoenix is what the trainer called me, but I prefer Robin."

"Anyway, when she's done, our trainer is called Olly. Also, _Phoenix _wants to ask you something." Freddie hopped away, leaving Psych and Robin alone.

"I can tell you're a human. You were the trainer's best friend, correct?" the Abra asked. Robin nodded, shocked. "I'm a mind reader, if that was confusing. So what do you need?"

Robin took a deep breath. "I would like to talk to Olly, but I can't. You can, though. Is there a way to sort of 'hook me up' to this telepathy thingumabob?" Psych slowly nodded, thinking deeply.

"Maybe. It requires a lot of power, though. Luckily I learned this, but I haven't done it in a while so it won't be for long." The Fletchinder exhaled as Psych screwed his eyes shut. She felt a surge of power racing through her as the Abra directed his psychic capabilities unto her.

_'...Olly?'_ The girl whipped around to see Psych concentrating deeply. 'Phoenix' stared up at her expectantly.

"My god, Phoenix, is that you?" Robin nodded and chirped.

'_Yes, but I'm not Phoenix.'_

"Well, who are you then?" she replied. Freddie and Oakie watched with astonishment.

_'I don't really know how to put this... I know you better than you think.'_

"And you sound like someone I know! Oh my god, Robin?!"

She nodded and flapped onto Olly's shoulder, Psych having lost control over the telepathy. The girl was shocked and extremely confused, hugging her and gasping. "What the heck happened?" Robin replied in the Pokémon language, which Olly couldn't comprehend. "Well, you can't talk now, so I guess my questions will have to wait. You don't need this anymore, I think it's safe to say." She threw the red-and-white ball to the ground and crushed it under her foot.

"Wait, how did you do that?" Freddie asked suspiciously.

"Psych got it to work. I'm no longer bound to a Poké Ball, at least." Robin sighed. The Abra grinned and floated beside her; Olly patted his head.

"I guess I have to stop calling you Phoenix now. Sorry 'bout that." the Frogadier smiled sheepishly and held out his webbed front leg to shake. She accepted the gesture, smirking, and hopped over to her friend once more.

"Psych, can you do that again?" she asked, turning to the Psi Pokémon who nodded. Feeling the power rushing to her mind she reached out once more.

_'Olly!' _she called up, waiting expectantly.

"Oh! You're doing it again! Sorry! Umm... what is it?" Olly replied, startled.

_'I have some friends... They're in trouble. Some are looking for me, some others are captive and their homes were destroyed.' _Olly gasped and sat down. _'I need to travel with you for a while to let them come to me, then I'll go.'_

"But you can't leave! What would happen to you in the wild?"

_'Remember in the woods? With the poacher?'_

"That was you?"

_'Those other Pokémon are the ones looking for me. I got taken captive and put in a cage, then broke out with a few others helping. Actually, a lot. I got captured in that ball,' _she pointed at the remains of the Poké Ball, _'and the next thing I knew you were calling me 'Phoenix' and pitting me against that Riolu. So they're most likely searching for me.'_

"I see... and you can defend yourself. Okay then, but won't you stay a while?"

_'Of course! I'll let them come to me. When you need to talk, tell Psych and he'll sort it out.'_

Olly smiled broadly and held out her arm, which Robin flapped up onto happily. Her problems were mostly solved, and that made her happier than she'd ever been. Olly might be able to help as well.

As they walked on, Robin sat comfortably on her shoulder, Olly thought about what happened. _I wonder if I could be a Pokémon too. That would be cool. _She quickly dispelled the thought and continued towards Camphrier Town, her other three Pokémon behind her.

* * *

"Chesnaught was taken to the Zoo, right here." Zorro swooped down sharply, allowing the three do dismount before even considering aborting his Fearow illusion.

"Yeah, so, what is this zoo place?" Izol yawned, stretching out and turning to face the building looming above them.

"Oh, a zoo! That's where people put animals, in this case Pokémon, in cages for other humans to look at." Ren replied, grinning. The other three looked shocked at his casual expression. Zorro rolled his eyes and covered them all in an illusion. Rin and Izol looked like the human embodiment of their species, save for the lack of Pokémon features, but Ren was the most shocked of all. He was himself again.

"Whoa, is that what you looked like? Looks pretty weird to me." Izol commented, Rin and Zorro (both now under the effects) sniggering. He shot them a killer stare, which shut them up, and decided to make the most of this time.

"How did you do this?" he asked Zorro, who looked casual as ever.

"The illusion works by itself. It uses your features, and I think it deducted that is what you should look like." the fox-become-human replied simply. Ren shrugged and walked on, entering the building. "Oh! I forgot!" he gasped, conjuring some illusionary money in his palm and handing it to the cashier at the desk.

"Go on through. The Starter Rooms are that way." The man pointed to a curtained door, which all four ran for immediately.

Approaching the glass sections of wall made all four feel uncomfortable and shifty like something was really, really wrong. Izol was first to reach the Grass enclosure, instantly spotting Chesnaught in the back.

"Chesnaught! It's me! Izol!" she yelled, smacking her fist against the glass. Both the Guildmaster and Elin rushed over as all four slipped out of their illusion.

"Hide! Come back at closing time! Go!" he yelled back, and Zorro quickly blanketed them all in an invisible cover and pressed themselves against the wall.

* * *

Time Skip

* * *

The lights dimmed and the sound of doors locking reverberated through the centre. The lights in the enclosures didn't cut off, though, leaving the Pokémon in an unshaded and bright spotlight. In the darkness the four crept silently around to the offices, Zorro leading the small charge.

"We'll need to get into the enclosures! There's a door here!" the Zorua announced, placing his paws on the thick wood. Lengthening his claws, readying himself for Fury Swipes, he sliced at the door ruthlessly multiple times until the wood gave way.

"Ahem?" Ren coughed deliberately, blasting his fire. Zorro face-pawed and shook his head, leaping gracefully through the small hole and into the surveillance room.

"The door is here, right? Ren can burn through it and we can get them out!" Izol glared at him to point out his quirk. "Easy, rig- dammit!" Ren rolled his eyes and curled up in a ball, his flame intensifying as he accelerated into a roll. Rushing the locked door at high speed, burning through as if it were butter, he unfurled as the others hopped through after him.

"Here! Poké Balls! Get in them, and you can all get out!" Izol yelled, and the Grass-types stampeded for the door as the four hurled the empty balls at random Pokémon in the room. Ren gathered them in his paws and rolled them over to the exit, getting them all into the corridor before dashing back for more. In the end all the Pokémon were safely packed up and ready to leave. Rin poised to Power-Up Punch the glass entrance in when they were distracted by a cacophony of bangs on the glass from the Water and Fire enclosures.

"Okay, fine! We're coming!" Ren called, and all four eventually (with the help of Ren's Flame Wheel) managed to get all the starters away. Zorro copied the Charizard, smirking, and took off into the sky with the Poké Balls on his back.

"All that's left to do is find Robin."

* * *

"So, are you hungry?"

"Chi!" came the shrill reply, and Olly sat down on a rock to open her bag. Pulling out a few Sitrus Berries, she lay them down on the grass and Robin devoured them in seconds.

"Nothing's changed food-wise, then!" she chuckled to herself. Releasing Freddie, Oakie and Psych, who she also fed, she felt a weight on the left half of her body as Robin landed on her shoulder. She chirped a few incomprehensible words to the Abra, who smiled and obliged immediately.

_'Nice berries!'_

"Umm... thanks? Anyway, we should be nearing Camphrier Town by now. Do you wanna scout ahead, see what's going on?"

_'Eh, I don't need to. There's a Grass-type using trainer ahead, though, so I'd be happy to battle!'_

"Okay, then. Anyway... what's it like to be a Pokémon?"

Robin looked thoughtful for a minute. _'It's weird at first. I remember faceplanting on the beach because I couldn't fly. And my team... they're probably still at Victory Road. But once you get used to it, everything feels amazing! The moves, battling, flight... it's incredible.'_

Olly mulled things over for a bit. "I can say that my Pokémon escaped onto Victory Road and I need to go get them. That means we can grab your team and maybe they can help us!"

"Fletch!" she cawed, realising too late that Psych had reached his limit.

"I'm taking that as a yes. Right?" Robin nodded and sighed, lifting off. "Can you ask Oakie if I can ride her?" She nodded again and glided off her shoulder, landing squarely on the Skiddo's horns.

"Hey, Oakie! Olly wants to know if you can ride her!"

"Oh, sure! Can Psych help us talk?" She turned to the Abra, who wearily nodded.

_'Olly! Hi! Psych linked us!' _Hearing the high female voice from behind her, Olly whipped around to see a proud Oakie bleating happily.

"Oakie?"

_'Yep! You can ride me if you want!'_

"That's great! This is weird... I'm talking to my Pokémon!" Oakie bleated again as the effects subsided, allowing Olly to clamber onto her back. Withdrawing Freddie and Psych, Robin flying alongside, she made her way swiftly to Santalune City where the Victory Road Gate lay.

"H-hello? I *sniffle* lost my Pokémon! They ran away this way!" Olly fake-sobbed to the Ace Trainers at the gate.

"Sigh. Strictly speaking, we can't let you in, but if your Pokémon are here, then we can't refuse. Find them, then leave until you have all eight badges." She nodded gratefully and sprinted to the exit before they could change their minds.

* * *

Time Skip

* * *

"Look, Robin! There! That's Kite!" Olly yelled, pointing at the two long, green antennae sticking out of a bush. Robin zipped over immediately, followed by Olly who approached the bug-eyed dragon with caution. "Kite! It's me!" she called. The Flygon grinned and sprinted over, followed by the other team members she'd left behind, all nuzzling up to Olly.

"Olly! Thank Arceus! You're the first familiar face we've seen in a week!" her Quilava, Cinders, yelled. Robin understood every word, which felt different and uncomfortable. "And who's the bird?"

"Remember me, guys?" she asked cheerfully. Her Talonflame, Glower, squinted at her with piercing eyes.

"Nope. Never seen you before in my life." she replied, turning away. It wasn't until Aura the Lucario approached and had a good sniff did any of them notice a thing.

"This can't be happening..." he muttered in a low male voice. Closing his eyes and reading the auras, his theory was confirmed. Kite leaned in for a closer look, followed by Sylvia the Sylveon, and both were just as confused as Aura was.

"What is it, guys?" asked her Swellow, Aeria. "You look as if you've seen a ghost, or found Robin or something like that!" Aura nodded grimly, both Cinders and Glower leaning in to hear what the Lucario had to say.

"I can confirm we have found our trainer. That cave did something really, really wrong." He stepped aside to reveal Olly with Robin on her shoulder.

"Robin turned into Olly? That doesn't make any sense! You are full of beans sometimes, Aura!" Glower turned away, followed by Cinders and Aeria.

"You don't get it! Robin, I know it's you. Isn't it?" The Fletchinder nodded; she hopped off Olly's shoulder and onto Aura's outstretched paw. All three were not convinced.

"Right! I didn't want to do this! On the 2nd August 2012 I left home with a Cyndaquil as my starter, who I nicknamed Cinders. On the 4th I caught a Fletchling, whom I named Glower due to her red feathers, and a Taillow named Aeria. Soon after, a Trapinch began to follow me around.

"I found an egg in a bush, which hatched into a Riolu I named Aura on the 20th. I defeated the Gym in Santalune City with one Pokémon left, Cinders, on the 29th. I encountered an Eevee on the first of September, and I named her Sylvia. By the time I reached the Cyllage City Gym I had a Quilava, Fletchinder, Swellow, Trapinch, Riolu and Eevee. After defeating the Gym easily Sylvia evolved into a Sylveon on the 16th, and then-" She was cut off by Glower.

"We've heard enough. We know now. What happened there did something really bad, and it's stranger than anything we've ever seen! Wait... Where's Olly?"

Glower watched, helpless, as Olana made a mad dash for the chasm Robin had disappeared in. "Stop!" she screeched, but Olly didn't listen. Stepping one foot into the cave, she disappeared without as much as a whisper. Robin slapped her face with her beak.

"Guys... Fly with me to Coumarine, please."

* * *

Well, that's that! This story has a newfound priority over Escape to Reality at the moment. Sorry if that's not what you wanted, but that chapter should be out soon!

_Robin: _That automatically translates as 'I enjoy torturing my characters and can't be bothered to write about anything else'.

Sorry, but that's sort of true...

_Robin: _*storms away again*

Sigh.

_Ren: _What did I miss?

Lots.

_Ren: _Aww...

Anyway, I'll let Ren end this chapter for being an awesome, understanding Quilava pal.

_Ren: _Thanks! Anyway, PokeThatPokemon and everyone else here in the writing studio will be back soon with more of this story and the others! Bye then!

Bye!


End file.
